Sisters salutes...

• Mindy Venable wrote: My father, Jim Venable, was a member of your great community. He recently passed away and has left family and friends behind with broken hearts. He was a great man, father, grandfather, husband, friend and co-worker. All who knew him have suffered a tremendous loss.

Recently his place of employment, Aspen Lakes Golf Course, held a Celebration of Life in his honor. From the bottom of my heart, I would like to thank everyone involved with that. What an amazing community you have! My brother, sister and myself were unable to attend due to the fact that we are in California and were having our own services and celebration in our hometown.

A few days ago, an amazing gift came in the mail! Friends and coworkers that attended my dad's celebration had videotaped the celebration and had cards there for everyone to sign to send back to us kids.

You all have no idea how much this has meant to me, my brother and sister.

To be able to hear what everyone there had to say about him and hear how much love and admiration you all have for him is unexplainable.

Our healing process has finally started, thanks to you! As I watched the videos, looked at the photos and read the amazing cards I finally was able to cry from a place of joy, not a place of pain.

Your kind words and stories of your experiences with him will forever be embedded in my heart.

Thank you to Aspen Lakes and everyone (friends, coworkers and neighbors) who made my dad's life in Sisters as special and meaningful as it was to him.

Thank you to everyone who took part in making this celebration of his life possible.

You have no idea what this all means to his family.

There is a ton of people to thank and I don't know how to get ahold of them all.

My hope is that they will see this letter and know just how special you all are and how much we appreciate everything.

Everything you have done for my dad while he was alive and since he has passed is so very appreciated.

He loved it up there.

He loved going to work.

He loved all of the friends he made.

He loved his neighbors.

To everyone who knew and loved my dad, Jim Venable, I'm also very sorry for your loss.

His spirit will live on in Sisters forever!

Lastly, I would like to thank your community for being there for our beautiful stepmother, his loving wife. This has been tremendously hard on her and will be for some time. Thank you for the love you have shown her and the prayers that have been said for her. The hardest thing for us is being so far away. Knowing that she is surrounded by such amazing people who love her and loved my dad definitely helps. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

A special thank-you to the Zenich family. We have never met, yet I feel like you are a part of my family. I cannot find the words to tell you just how much you mean to me.

• Sandy Boyer wrote:

Many of us who love our dogs would like to thank Kellie Landers for the awesome job of caring for our pets for the last 15 years. She will be greatly missed! The Deschutes Dog Salon in Bend is very fortunate to have Kellie on board. I send her my best wishes and good luck.